


Mind Games

by PattRose



Category: Jack Reacher Series - Lee Child, The Sentinel
Genre: Crossover, Kidnapping, M/M, Sentinel Bingo Card, Violence
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-03-24
Updated: 2018-03-24
Packaged: 2019-04-07 15:32:31
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,266
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14084004
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PattRose/pseuds/PattRose
Summary: Someone has kidnapped Jim and Blair can’t seem to get much help from anyone else so he calls on Jack Reacher.Sentinel BingoPrompt: Mind Control





	Mind Games

Mind Games  
By PattRose  
Summary: Someone has kidnapped Jim and Blair can’t seem to get much help from anyone else so he calls on Jack Reacher.  
Genre: Slash  
Rating: Mature  
Prompt: Mind Control  
Warning: Crossover with Jack Reacher.  
Word Count: 6280  
Beta: Bluewolf. (Thank you, sweetie.) 

 

Blair was working all day and couldn’t wait to get home to his roommate and lover. Jim was making Homemade Chicken Pot Pie and that was by far one of Blair’s new favorites. Blair noticed when he drove up that there were no lights on in the loft, which was odd, but he would check it out when he got up there. _I hope he doesn’t have a headache. I had plans for him tonight._

When Blair unlocked the door, he knew without turning the light on that someone had taken Jim. The moonlight was shining into the loft and Blair could see the mess that Jim, and whoever took him, had made. First of all, Blair turned on the light so he could see properly. Everything in the living room and dining room was tipped over and upturned. Then Blair saw the syringe lying on the floor next to the sofa and it was clear as a bell what had happened. Jim had been kidnapped. Blair didn’t touch anything and called Simon on his cell phone. 

“Simon, someone has taken Jim against his will.”

“What are you talking about? He was making you dinner, you said.”

“Dinner is lying all over the kitchen floor and there isn’t one piece of furniture in this house that didn’t get overturned. What are we going to do?” Blair asked, dreading the answer. 

“I’ll bring a team out, but the FBI has to be called in. They do kidnapping, Blair, and you know it.”

“Don’t call them. Can’t we do this alone?”

“You know I have to call them, Blair. Now sit out in the hallway and wait for me to get there.”

“Yes, sir,” Blair answered, as he closed his phone. He walked out to the stairway and sat on a step. He tried not to touch anything there either in case they tried to get prints from the banister. 

Blair tried to think of who would have Jim. Maybe it was someone from his past or someone he had jailed and just gotten out. There were so many what-ifs that Blair was getting a headache from the tension.

*

“I thought you said he would be awake in an hour?” the first man asked the second.

“That’s what they told me. But we have to wait for the boss anyway, so it works out perfect this way.”

“What do you mean perfect. He’s out cold and the boss will want to ask him questions.”

They both stood up when the tall man walked into the room. “Why is he sleeping?”

“Sir, they said an hour, but it’s been three. He hasn’t woken up yet.”

The tall man walked over to Jim who was chained to a bed and tested the chains to be sure he was not going to get free. He grabbed Jim’s face by his chin and shook him. “It’s time to wake up, Captain Ellison.”

When that didn’t do it, the tall man slapped him twice, and finally Jim opened his eyes. Jim stared at the tall man and was a little confused. 

“Captain, how do you feel right now?”

“I’m not a Captain anymore, sir.” Jim could see that he was a General by the stars on his jacket. 

“You were never relieved of duty. We’ve been watching you for years. It’s time for you to come back to the fold.”

“General, I have a job and a life. That’s what I want to go back to.”

The tall general took a taser out and zapped Jim with it. Jim pretended he was out cold. 

“I’m not falling for it, Captain. I know a taser wouldn’t knock you out. It would just stun you. I need to know what you did with the papers from the chopper.”

Jim was confused again. “What chopper? What papers?”

The general zapped him once more, except this time, it really did knock Jim out. 

“Sir, you’re never going to get answers from him if he’s out cold,” the first man reminded him. 

“You aren’t telling your General what to do, are you?” the mad man asked. 

“Of course not sir,” the second man answered for both of them. Honestly he was beginning to question some of this so called questioning. 

“Go get the Captain something to eat and drink for when he wakes up. Keep him happy and I’ll be back with more questions in about two hours.”

He walked out the door and the two men stared at each other, each shrugging their shoulders.

*

It had been five hours and the FBI still was questioning Blair about who he thought might be behind this. Of course Blair told them everything that everyone else did. There were four newly released felons that hated Jim with a passion. There was Brackett, but the FBI was certain that he was still in prison. Blair wondered if they really knew. Then Blair had mentioned the time he was in the service and maybe something had come back to haunt him from that. The FBI basically told Blair to stay somewhere else for a week or two while they tried to figure things out and finger-printed the entire loft.

Megan told Blair to pack a bag saying he could stay with her. The FBI watched him like a hawk while he packed up his backpack and his laptop. When they finally left, it was 3:00 in the morning. 

As they were driving to Megan’s, Blair pulled his phone out and dialed a number from memory and waited for the beep. “Reacher, it’s Blair Sandburg. Could you call me? Someone took Jim. I need some help.” That was all he left. It would be all that Reacher needed. 

“Reacher, from Seattle?” Megan asked. 

“Yeah, he might be able to help us find Jim. I think it might have something to do with his service days. I don’t know why I feel this, I just do.” 

“How do you know he’ll call you?”

“I don’t know, Megan. I’ll hope and pray he gets my message. I just have to be patient and wish that everything turns out all right.”

*

Meanwhile, at the secluded house, Jim was being tortured for not answering the general’s questions. Jim had no clue what this was all about, but the fucking looney tunes dude thought he did. Jim knew that the general was insane. He was getting weak and tired. He hoped that the evil man would at least let him sleep during the night. He needed to build up his strength.

As the shocking was continuing, Jim decided that as soon as he had a second to breathe, he was going into a zone. It was the only way he could live until Simon, Blair and the gang found him. 

They brought dinner in and Jim listened to see if he heard the general. The next thing Jim knew he was zoned. While in the zone, he was in the blue jungle. He hoped to see Incacha. It was peaceful and Jim was happy. He could do this.

*

At 5:30 am, Blair’s phone went off and Blair answered quickly. “Sandburg.”

“Hi, Sandburg. What’s going on with Ellison? Who kidnapped him and why? Fill me in.”

“Reacher, I’m so glad to hear your voice. Do you have a cup of coffee? It’s going to take a while to explain.”

“I always have coffee, Sandburg. Now get to it.”

“The FBI has been called in on what they are labeling a kidnapping but I have a feeling it has something to do with his old service days. I don’t know why I think that, I just do.”

“I’ll be there as soon as I can. Stay strong and we’ll find him.”

“Thanks, Reacher. I feel better already. You might be able to figure this out.” 

“Remember that man you and Jim told me about named Brackett? Do you think it has to do with him?”

“He’s still in prison, but he might know something,” Blair said. 

“Find out where he is so I can visit him when I get there. I think he might know something that no one else does. Hang in there and we’ll see you soon.”

Blair closed his phone and looked lost. He didn’t like sleeping alone. _Like you’re going to be sleeping anyway._ But as he lay there and thought about things, he soon drifted off.

*

“What do you mean you can’t wake him up?” the general yelled.

“He’s like in a coma or something. I think we did too much to him and he’s dying.”

“He can’t be dying, he hasn’t answered my questions yet. Try to wake him up with the taser every 20 minutes. That should bring him out.”

“Yes, sir.” The man walked out of the room and back to where Jim was. He didn’t know what to do. There was no way he was using the taser on anyone while he was unconscious. He needed to talk to his partner. The general seemed unhinged or something.

When he walked in the room, his partner, Miller, said, “He’s still out. I think he’s dying. I didn’t sign up for this, Baker.”

“The General wants us to taser him every 20 minutes to wake him up,” Baker explained. 

“Well, I’m not doing that. What should we do? I think he’s dying. His vitals are very low.”

Baker thought for a moment and said, “I’m going for coffee and will send a message to his partner.”

“We’ll probably be court martialed, or worse,” Miller pointed out. 

“I’ll wait a day or two for the message to be sent. You need to go and sleep some. I’ll stay with Ellison.”

“Thanks, Baker. Don’t let anyone new come in and taser him. Okay? We’re in enough trouble as it is. We don’t need a dead body on our hands.”

Miller walked out of the room and Baker watched the machine and saw what Miller was talking about. Ellison was barely there any longer. He just hoped that he could hang in there a day or two and Baker would help him.

*

Reacher took a bus to Cascade and arrived in 12 hours. When he got to Megan’s place, he saw a very worried Sandburg.

Blair shook Reacher’s hand and said, “I feel so much better with you here. We’re going to find him, I just know it.”

“Did you find out about Brackett?” Reacher asked. 

“Yes, he’s under lock and key. You can visit him if you’d like. But it’ll be recorded.”

“I don’t care if it’s recorded or not and neither will he. When do we leave?”

Blair looked relieved and said, “What about now?”

Megan walked out of the bathroom and said, “Good to see you, Reacher. What’s on the game plan for today?”

Reacher looked at Blair as if to measure her dependability and Blair said, “She’s safe. She’s trustworthy. We can use her for whatever we can.”

He smiled and said, “In that case, she’s going up to the prison with me. I want you to stay here and see if anything comes through your phone.”

“I wanted to see Brackett!” Blair said, sharply. 

“You’ll see him later-if he gives us anything you can go up and thank him. Now, Connor, you’re with me. Do you know where he is?”

“Yes, I do. It’s about an hour away. Sandy, hold the fort down and tell Simon where I am.” She hugged Blair, then they walked out the door. 

Blair didn’t like that he was being left behind, but after all, he was the one that called Reacher. Blair knew he had to do what Reacher said.

*

Blair called Simon and filled him in.

“You think it has to do with Brackett?” Simon asked. 

“We don’t know but Reacher and Megan will find out. I’m hoping for good news.”

“So am I, Blair. It’s already been too long and no call to the Feds. So he wasn’t kidnapped for ransom.”

“Never thought he was, Simon.” 

“I hope he’s doing all right,” Simon said, worriedly. 

“Me too. If it’s someone from his past service days, God only knows what they want or what they need. I feel better with Reacher on the case though.”

“Good, now just lie low and let me know when they get back.”

“Will do, Simon. Let me know if you hear anything too.”

Simon hung up the phone and chewed on one of his unlit cigars. He was fucking worried and he was afraid that Reacher wasn’t going to be able to do anything.

*

The general walked in and said, “Baker, you haven’t been shocking him like I ordered.”

“Sir, look at his vitals. They are too low. He’s no good to us dead.”

“Maybe that Sentinel crap is true. Maybe we need to get his friend here to help us with Ellison. Where is Miller?”

Baker looked horrified. Now they were going to take someone else? “Sir, I don’t think we need to kidnap a civilian.”

“Who is in charge here, Baker? Where is Miller?”

“Miller is sleeping, sir. We take opposite shifts.”

“Since Miller is a nurse, you’ll be the one to kidnap Sandburg. Understood? When Miller comes back on duty, you’re up. Don’t come back without him.”

“Yes, sir.”

The general walked out of the room and Baker took a deep breath he had been holding. This man was insane. Baker knew it to be true. He was going to have to get help. At least he had a good eight hours to think up a plan. He could also get some ideas from Miller. Neither of them wanted Ellison dead. And the general seemed totally off his rocker, so it was just them to protect Ellison.

*

When Reacher and Megan arrived at the prison, they signed in and were told to wait. Megan had to leave her gun and badge with them. Reacher didn’t have a gun, so he was all right.

The guards called them after about ten minutes and Reacher and Megan followed them back to the visiting room. Brackett was behind a glass wall and there were phones connected. Reacher hated them. He preferred face to face talking, but he would have to deal with this. 

Reacher picked up the phone and so did Brackett. Brackett said, “Jack Reacher, what would you need to talk to me about?”

Reacher didn’t even question the fact that Brackett knew who he was. He was evidently friends with his captors. “Inspector Connor and I are investigating the disappearance of Jim Ellison. We were hoping you would be able to help us in some way.”

“Did you hear that the General is in town?” Brackett said, simply. 

“No. I was not aware.”

“Be sure to tell him I said hello when you see him, which you will soon,” Brackett added. 

Reacher nodded his head and asked, “Do you have any questions, Connor?”

“I’m not familiar with the General. Would he like to meet me too?” she asked. 

“Oh, he’ll love meeting you, Inspector. If there is nothing else, I have lunch waiting for me.”

“Good seeing you,” Reacher answered. 

“You too, Reacher. Tell Ellison I said hello.”

Brackett got up and walked away. Reacher and Megan both got up and walked out, collected Megan’s items and walked out to the parking lot. 

“Do you want to tell me what’s going on?” she asked, finally. 

“Sandburg was right. It has to do with an old Army General. We’ll figure out who he is and where he is soon. Don’t you worry.”

“How?”

“If this general has any men underneath him, someone might come forward to us. They won’t want to be part of a kidnapping. We train for a lot of shit, but we don’t want to deal with kidnappers.”

Megan drove as fast as she could back to Cascade. She felt like things might work out. She didn’t know why she felt like that, but she did. While she drove Reacher made calls to some friends that might know of a general that had something to do with Jim.

*

At Megan’s apartment, Blair was pacing. Reacher had called on Megan’s phone and told Blair they would be back soon and would fill him in on what they found out. Blair was not known for his patience, and was about to climb the walls when Reacher and Megan walked in the door.

“Do you know where he is?” Blair asked, excitedly. 

Reacher pushed him back so they could walk in the doorway and said, “Slow down. Sit down and I’ll fill you in.”

Blair sat down and tried to be patient, but it wasn’t working. 

Reacher sat next to him and said, “Brackett said it was a general. So I called and got some info on a general from Ellison’s Army days. So we have a name now. It’s General Adams. He’s getting ready to retire and from what I’ve heard it’s not because he wants to. But two days ago he didn’t show up to work and no one has seen or heard from him. There are also two men from his unit that are missing. I think we found our man. Now, I need to look and see if Adams has any property in Cascade that he could use to hold Jim.”

“I can’t believe you found all this out already,” Blair said, happily. 

“Don’t get excited yet, Sandburg. We’re a long way from finding him. Unless those two men come forward and confess we have nothing to go on just yet. Do you have a laptop?”

“Yes, I’ll start looking for the information you need.” Blair said. 

Megan smiled at Reacher and said, “He’s got the same program on his computer that we have at the station house. He’ll be able to track down Adams in a timely fashion.”

“The man I talked to said the general was insane. So that’s something to worry about too. We’ll see what you find and we’ll go from there. Sandburg, you need to move back into the apartment you and Ellison share.”

“What do I do with the Feds?” Blair asked as he typed. 

“Tell them they are no longer needed. I don’t care, just get rid of them.”

“I’ll have Simon take care of it,” Megan said, quickly. She pulled out her phone and filled Simon in on what they heard at the prison. She asked him to get rid of the Feds. Simon said he would call right back. 

Simon called the Feds and said that Jim was on a vacation. He had gotten a call from one of Blair’s old girlfriends and got pissed off, hence the mess he made in the loft. The Feds didn’t act like they believed him but they said they would be out in an hour.

Simon called Megan. “I just talked to them, they are leaving. They want to talk to Jim when he comes home. They may slap a fine or two on him for the trouble he made.”

“Oh fuck them,” Megan shouted. “So when can Sandy move back home?”

“In an hour. Tell Reacher to be sure that they are gone and didn’t leave any little gifts behind. Like listening devices.”

“You think they would bug Blair?”

“I don’t know what I think, Megan. But tell Blair he can go back in an hour. Talk to you soon.”

Megan closed her cell and said, “One hour from now you can be back home.”

“Thank God. Reacher, do you think anyone will come visit us?” Blair asked. 

“If they any sense of right and wrong they will. They probably don’t know what to do.”

“I’ll keep searching while we wait for the hour to be done. I can’t wait to get back to our loft. And then when Jim is back, it’ll be perfect. I have hope now, Reacher. Thank you.”

“Don’t thank me yet. We have to rely on the kindness of strangers and I’m not sure they’ll do what’s right. We’ll see what you turn up for General Adams.”

*

General Adams went and woke Miller up from his nap. “Get up. You need to watch Ellison while Baker goes on a mission.”

“Yes, sir. I’ll be right there,” he answered, not knowing what the hell was going on. 

When he got freshened up, he joined the two men in Ellison’s room and saw that Ellison looked worse than he did before. “So what’s going on, Baker?”

“I have to go and get Blair Sandburg from the apartment. I’ll be back with him soon. He might have some answers. Clean Ellison up and have him ready for visitors.”

“Don’t tell Miller what to do. You’re not in charge, I am. Miller, clean Ellison up so that Sandburg won’t be upset.”

The General was looking elsewhere and Baker rolled his eyes. Miller knew exactly what Baker was planning and would have Ellison ready for transport to the nearest hospital. Both men would have to overcome the General.

*

Once they were back at the loft, Reacher started cleaning up the place while Blair searched for information. It kept Reacher busy, because he didn’t like not knowing where Ellison was.

“It says here that General Adams has a cabin up in the mountains. Could it be that simple?”

“It could if he’s as nuts as they think he is. Get a location for it, so we can start looking. It’ll be time to call in Captain Banks and the others.” Reacher felt like he was getting somewhere.

*

Baker knew that he was going to be arrested by the Feds, probably, but he had to do this. And hopefully the general wouldn’t turn on Miller and kill him. Or Ellison. He stood outside the door and waited a moment to gather his wits about him. Then he knocked ever so softly.

Reacher went for the door before Blair had a chance to do or say anything. Reacher opened the door and yanked the soldier inside. “Where is he?” Reacher asked. 

“The General wants to see Sandburg. If you follow me, we’ll help you. There are only two of us on guard for Ellison. The General is insane. And right now, we can’t wake Ellison up. So he’s not doing well.”

“I’m going to be in your trunk and you can take Sandburg in, but I need a way into the cabin without the General knowing. Do you have a way in?”

“I’ll leave the door open, but I hope we find Ellison alive. The General was very abusive to him. Kept hitting him with the taser over and over again.”

Blair was so upset, he could hardly see straight. “And the two of you just stood by?”

“He’s in charge of us. We would be court-martialed for disobeying orders. I’m sorry Sandburg, I tried to keep the General away from him, but it didn’t always work. He wanted some papers and files from some copter crash. But Ellison didn’t seem to know what he was talking about.”

“Do you have weapons in the trunk of your car?” Reacher asked. 

“Yes, there are two automatic rifles and a hand-gun. They are all loaded and ready to use. I suggest we get going or he’ll know something is up.”

Reacher said, “Sandburg, don’t try anything until I get in there to help you. Just keep Ellison alive.”

“I got it, Reacher. I won’t be a hero, I just want Jim to be safe.”

They all walked out to the parking lot, Reacher got into the trunk. There was a clasp to open the trunk from the inside, so he didn’t have to worry about being stuck in there all night. He wasn’t thrilled about being in a trunk because of his height, he was completely bent in half. Reacher hoped this wouldn’t take too long. He noticed the man had kept his promise. There were guns, although Reacher didn’t think he would need them at all.

*

About an hour later, General Adams heard the car drive up. He turned to Miller and said, “See if Baker needs help getting him in here.”

Miller walked out and said, “You got him okay?”

Baker whispered, “We have someone in the trunk to help.”

“Good, because he’s getting freakier by the moment. He’s talking about killing him soon if Sandburg can’t wake him up.”

“I’ll be able to wake him up. Don’t worry about that, you guys just get ready to take him out.”

Baker opened the trunk and gave the key to Reacher. “I don’t need mine, so we can lock it in case he checks the door. We’re downstairs in the second bedroom. The top floor creaks, so he’ll know you’re here.”

“Get in there and do what a good soldier would do. Take him out,” Reacher said, quietly. 

“We’ll do our best, sir.” Baker walked away looking sad, knowing they would probably have to kill the general and Reacher knew that too. 

Blair walked in with the men and didn’t even look at the general sitting by Jim’s bed. 

“Hi, Jim. It’s me. It’s time to come back. I need your help. You know you want to hear my voice again, am I right?”

Jim was in the blue jungle talking with Incacha when he heard his Guide’s sweet voice. He heard him calling his name and asking him to wake up, so Jim did what any Sentinel would do. He said goodbye to Incacha and started leaving the jungle. 

Everyone noticed that Ellison’s vitals were getting better. His heart rate was strong and everything else was going up as it needed to. 

Blair touched Jim’s face and softly said, “Don’t worry about a thing. I talked to Reacher and he’s good with us.”

Jim opened his eyes and knew that something was up. Why would Reacher be good with them? He saw the general standing there with the taser and knew that now Blair was in his nightmare. But Jim had hope because if Reacher was there, he would see to it that something happened to the general. 

“Chief, I’m sorry.”

“Oh, isn’t that sweet? He’s worried about his friend. Baker, take Sandburg and hold him next to you and here is the taser. If Ellison doesn’t answer my questions, taser Sandburg. Understood?”

“Understood, sir.”

Jim didn’t know what was going on, but he knew that Baker was lying. So he had other plans. Jim had hope. 

Baker held Sandburg close to him and waited for the general to give the order. General Adams said, “So, Ellison, now are you going to tell me where the papers are?”

“Yes, sir. I have them hidden,” Jim answered, weakly. 

“That’s more like it. See, gentlemen, this is how it’s done. No fuss or anything. We can get rid of Sandburg now.”

“Sir, we should keep him until you get the papers you need.”

“That’s true, I’m glad you pointed that out. Thank you, Baker.”

“You’re welcome, General.” Baker let go of Blair and Blair went and sat next to Jim. Baker kept waiting for the creaking boards in the house, but he never heard them. Instead, he looked and in the doorway was Major Reacher. Baker had heard of him years ago and now he knew the stories were true. He was good, he was very good.

He snuck up behind General Adams and grabbed his arms. Reacher pulled said arms behind the general’s back and said, “I need rope or cuffs. I would suggest you shut your big mouth, General, because the law is taking over now.”

Baker walked over with cuffs and put them on the general. “I’ll have you court-martialed for this, Baker. I’ll tell them it was all your idea. Same goes for Miller. You’ll never get out of prison.”

“Except that we’re all here to witness this and you’re not going to bring charges against anyone. Baker, call the MPs from your unit. Tell them what’s going on and where you are. I’ll be sure that no one hurts you,” Reacher assured him. 

Reacher shoved the general into a chair and was quite rough doing it. That was for what he had done to Jim Ellison. “Miller, do you have Ellison’s clothes? It would be nice if he could get dressed before the MPs come.”

“I’ll get everything he needs. I’m sorry, Captain Ellison.”

“It’s not your fault, you were following orders. And if it wasn’t for you, Reacher and Sandburg wouldn’t be here to save the day with you,” Jim said, quite truthfully. 

Reacher, the general, Baker and Miller walked out of the room once Blair had the clothes to help Jim get into. Thankfully, his shoes and socks were there too. Blair helped him get ready and saw all the burns from the taser and was very upset. Jim could tell and said, “It’s okay, Chief. It’s over now and I’ll not have to worry about this jerk again. That was good thinking, calling Reacher.”

“His number is in my book for emergencies. I figured this was close enough. We owe him and Brackett a lot of thanks.”

“Brackett helped?” Jim was shocked. 

“Yes, he was very close mouthed about it, but he helped Reacher figure it out. We’re going to visit him once you’re back to normal,” Blair said. 

They walked up the stairs and there sat the general mouthing off to Reacher. “I’ll have your life for touching a US Army General. They won’t take this lying down.”

“Sir, shut up,” Reacher said, as calmly as he could. 

“Miller and Baker, did you hear him talk to me?” the insane man asked. 

“Sir, we don’t hear anything.”

They all just sat there and Blair decided to call Simon. He pulled out his phone, that Baker had let him keep, and called Simon. 

“Simon, we found him. He’s alive and well. An insane general had him in the mountains trying to get information. Reacher got him, Simon.”

“Put Reacher on,” Simon ordered. 

Blair handed the phone to Reacher. 

“Captain Banks?”

“I can never thank you enough for saving Jim Ellison’s life and keeping Blair Sandburg safe. Anything you ever need you remember to call me for it.”

“Well, sir, I don’t have a hotel to stay in. I’ve been up for days. I could use a change of clothing and a clean bed to sleep in.”

“How does Cascade Towers sound?” 

“Sounds perfect. Thank you, Captain.”

“And thank you, Reacher. I’ll never forget. None of us will.”

Reacher handed the phone back to Blair and continued his watch out the front window. He figured in another 45 minutes the MPs would be there to arrest the good general. 

“Reacher, I’ll offer you money to kill Ellison and Sandburg. Enough to make it worth your while.”

“Did everyone just hear him?” Reacher asked, and looked at the General. “I wouldn’t do anything for you.”

The general decided to start screaming obscenities and it was driving all of them nuts. Especially Jim. Jim had a headache from hell. 

“Baker, do you mind if I sit out in your car. My headache is getting worse being around this man.”

“Sure, don’t go far. Sandburg, are you staying with him?” Baker asked. 

“I wouldn’t be anywhere else.”

The general continued to mouth off to all of them one minute and then bribe them the next. He was totally off his rocker. 

When the MPs arrived, Reacher was never so happy to see anyone in his life. They put the cuffed general in the van and took statements from everyone, including Jim and Blair. It took hours and Jim was starting to fade. 

Reacher said to the first MP, “Would it be all right if we get Ellison to a hospital. He needs care.”

They had them all sign papers and they were all free to go, except for the insane man in the van that was still screaming and yelling. 

Baker drove Reacher, Sandburg and Ellison back to Cascade to the hospital. Reacher sat in the front and Ellison and Sandburg looked quite cozy sleeping in the back seat. 

“Thank you, Baker, for everything you did. I know it wasn’t easy to do.”

“I just wish I could have done it before he hurt Ellison. I really thought I was doing the right thing until he started acting stranger by the moment.” He looked into the rear view mirror and felt bad all over again seeing the two men in the back seat. When he finally drove up to the hospital, Reacher helped Jim get out and into the hospital. 

Baker showed his credentials to the woman at the window and said, “This is for an investigation that is top secret. We have to have him taken care of right now. Here is my card. Call me when the papers are ready to sign. Everything will be paid for by the military. Jim just raised his eyebrows when that was said. They took Jim to the back and said a doctor would look at him right away. 

Baker looked at Reacher and asked, “Do you mind waiting to go to the hotel that Captain Banks got for you?”

“That’s fine. Let’s sit in the waiting room and then we can take the two of them home if the doctor discharges Ellison,” Reacher agreed. 

They sat down, one seat between them because Reacher liked his space and Baker could tell.

*

Simon called Megan into his office and said, “Jim and Blair are up at the hospital. Blair is fine, but they tortured Jim. Not they, the supposed general in charge. Thankfully, the men that were with him realized he was insane and went to Reacher and Blair. Now, Reacher just needs to check in at the hotel and get some rest. I’ll check on Jim in just a few minutes.”

“Would you like me to take Reacher to Cascade Towers and get him a room?” she asked. 

“I already got him one. He just needs to show id and it’s his for the week. He’s also got free food at the hotel restaurant, which they’ll tell him about when he gets there. I figured it was the least I could do to get Jim back in one piece.”

“Do you mind if I go to the hospital and pick him up and take him to his room?”

“Megan, I think you need to be careful. Reacher isn’t in this for a relationship.”

“I’m not either and I think we would get along swimmingly.”

“Fine, go and pick him up. Thank him again from me.”

Megan walked out a happy camper. She found Reacher more attractive than anyone she had dated while in the US. Hopefully, he felt the same way about her.

*

Jim and Blair came walking out of the ER examining room and Reacher and Baker were both shocked.

“How are you doing, Ellison?” Baker asked, first. 

“They released me and told me I had to take a week off from work to rest. Wow, I don’t know what I’m going to do with myself,” Jim teased. 

Reacher held his hand out to shake Jim’s. “I’m glad you’re all right, Ellison. We were worried about you.”

“Thank you for coming, Reacher, I don’t know what I would have done without you,” Blair said. 

At that moment Megan Connor walked in, carrying hot coffee for Reacher and said, “I’m here to pick up Jack Reacher and deliver him to his room at Cascade Towers. I’m also buying him dinner.”

Reacher had a big smile on his face and Megan knew that he liked the way she looked. There would be no problem there. He grabbed the coffee and took a big swig and swallowed it down. He needed that. 

“Good luck, Sandburg and Ellison. Call me if you ever need my help again,” Reacher said shaking both of their hands. Then he turned to Baker and said, “Good work, soldier. I’m very proud of what you did tonight. Have a good life.”

Just like that the two of them walked out of the waiting room. 

Simon walked in right after they left and smiled when he saw Jim. He went over and gave him a big hug and then hugged Sandburg. “I hear that you are the man to thank for getting Jim out,” Simon said to Baker.

“It was my pleasure, sir. It was the least I could do.”

“Baker, you can leave now. I’m taking my men home and giving them a week off to get their bearings.”

Baker shook hands with everyone and walked out the door. It was a long drive to Fort Lewis. 

“Really? A week off?” Blair asked, happily. 

“Really. Come on, let’s go and clean that loft up,” Simon said, as a reminder to both of them. 

Jim groaned and said, “We’ll do it, Simon.”

“Maybe I would like to help, Jim. And besides it’s not every day I get to see you after you could have been killed. Just let me help. I’m not staying all night.”

“Thank God,” Blair whispered and Jim burst out laughing. 

“All right, what did the smart ass say this time?”

“God, it’s good to be back,” Jim said and walked out the door. Simon and Blair followed with a big smile on their faces. 

The end


End file.
